News

Halloween has exploded in Japan and most language schools make an event of it, requiring teachers and staff to wear costumes to lessons or a school party.

While some people don't mind, the union, and the Labor Standards Law, doesn't believe that employees should be burdened with the cost of a costume. If it is a requirement of your job to wear a costume the school should either provide costumes, or reimburse teachers for the cost of buying one.

Instructors who were at Gaba in 2011 will remember the trains stopping and the streets being clogged with cars. Some will also remember walking huge distances to get home in the middle of the night. The Tokyo government wants to prevent a repeat of this in the event of any future disaster.

On September 29th the union submitted a query to Gaba asking how they were complying with the Tokyo Metropolitan Govermment ordinance from April 2013 stating that companies should keep supplies in their offices in case of people being stranded in a disaster.

NUGW Tokyo East's Metrocommerce Branch is a group of non-regular employees working at kiosks in Tokyo Metro stations. They are fighting to eliminate wage discrimination between them and the regular employees. On the 22nd of November, they are holding an assembly to appeal for support for their branch's struggle, and also to call on fellow non-regular employees--who suffer from the same sorts of discrimination and low wages--to stand up together. We hope every one of you will be able to participate.

At the request of the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions our union has submitted a protest letter (see below) to both the President of China and the CEO of Hong Kong protesting their attacks on pro-democracy protesters and strikers.

Some things never change. Back in 2006 we ran a story from our sister union in Tokyo about problems at British Culture Academy. Here it is eight years later and they are just as sketchy as ever. The company has made illegal salary deductions for resigning, necessitating teachers lodging a case with the Labor Standards Board. Contact us if you work there. It just goes to show you need to keep a strong union in your work place.

As a union of mostly migrant workers we put a lot if effort into recruiting new members as people are regularly returning to their home countries. Recruitment is essential for us. We do a lot of different activities to make the union attractive to new members. We hold open meetings, we make leaflets, YouTube videos , we stand outside schools ready to talk to people willing to listen, but in the final analysis, whether people join or not, comes down to our current members.

The Japan Times has published another article dealing with incidents of sexual harassment in the English teaching industry. It is very sad that this kind of article is necessary, but it is. Sexual harassment in the workplace should not be accepted, and if it occurs it should be dealt with by employers. Unfortunately this is often not the case, particularly when the person doing the harassment is a client, as has happened at Gaba Corporation.

After months of preparation, we are happy to announce the formation of our new union branch at Osaka City Board of Education. Known as Osaka C-NETs, the branch consists of Native English Teachers (NETS) who teach alongside Japanese English teachers.

I'm William from the East Midlands in England, and I've been working as an Osaka C-NET since August 2013. I was born and raised in the UK trade union system and I've been with the General Union since July 2014.

Four years on from the acquisition of GEOS and a long period of restructuring and branding changes, things at Nova have stabilized. Old branches have been renovated, several new branches have opened, and new educational material is being published.

As many of you know, the General Union is suing Nippon Steel Sumikin Intercom (NSSI) over the illegal dismissal of two workers. At first the company claimed restructuring, however we have found evidence of the company advertising positions that our members could have done.

Christmas is for everyone. It may seem a little early to write about Christmas now, but at this time in 2013 Gaba Corporation were planning last year’s company Christmas party. Unfortunately instructors were not invited, which the union officially protested in negotiations with the company. Consequently, in June the union asked the company to invite instructors this time.

I joined the General Union in 2002 and have witnessed some fundamental improvements in working conditions due to persistent union activity.

Our union brings change that goes far beyond the workplace and has a direct impact on society.

This keeps me focused on our overall long term goals.

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Ricky B. (Sannomiya, Ashiya, Nishinomiya & Hiroshima)

Hi, My name is Ricky and I have been with Berlitz since January 2000.

In that time I have seen many changes both beneficial and not so for employees and staff.

Recently I decided to step up to the plate and join the General Union as I felt the changes were now more detrimental to a suitable working environment for staff and teachers.

As an executive officer and local representative for Sannomiya, Ashiya & Nishinomiya I am here for you.

I strongly believe that a better working environment for staff and teachers is essential so don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions, concerns or even wish to just chat about things in general.

My door and email address is always open for you.

***

Ross R. (Umeda)

I’ve been with the union for over 10 years.

I’m a member of the Berlitz Branch and work mainly in the Umeda Language Center.

I’m a strong believer in keeping workplace accountability to its employees high and the union has served that purpose well.

I’m happy to listen to your workplace concerns and pass them along to the right person.

At negotiations last week the General Union Gaba Branch asked the company a number of questions about emergency preparations, and showed a photo of the evacuation procedure poster in Shimbashi Learning Studio, which has been on the wall lacking an evacuation point for over 12 months. The company followed up on this and as seen below, there is now an evacuation point displayed at Shimbashi LS. The company is going to follow up all other LSs and ensure that they all have emergency posters with evacuation locations.

Disciplinary procedures and student complaints can cause a lot of stress for many teachers. Teachers are sent into a room alone to face people who are in a position of power and often feel bullied into signing statements of guilt with no time to consider what is happening or get advice.

And with this the company wanted us just to have a “gentlemen's agreement” in regards to consulting the union BEFORE changes are made to members' working conditions.

For many years the union and Panasonic Excel International had a relatively smooth relationship and we were able to work out many problems which our members faced, but now, with the non-renewal of the branch chair, it’s hard to believe that Excel expects a smooth working relationship with the union.

Last week the Japan Times published an article dealing with the issue of sexual harassment at Gaba Corporation. It featured interviews with a number of Gaba instructor who gave their accounts of sexual harassment while working at Gaba. The stories were horrific, and something that no one should ever have to put up with.

After several rounds of Collective Bargaining with ECC, members in Chubu and Kansai were left with no option but to start industrial action and strike on Saturday, May 31st. The union had been negotiating with ECC management over Pay Increases, Annual Contract Completion Bonuses, Job Security, Teacher Evaluations and more. As Collective Bargaining proceeded ECC`s answers went from bad to worse.

As a result of General Union demands, Nichii Gakkan, Coco Juku’s parent company, has ordered Coco Juku to follow Article 23 of the Labor Standards Law. Full details were sent to the union in official documents on May 7.

Kansai International School/Sakura International School is notorious for its paid holiday system. Now someone has finally done something about it.

After consulting the union, one teacher applied to use her remaining paid holidays when resigning from the company. This is your right. Rather than being intimidated by the company’s refusal to pay and stopping there, the teacher took action.

We like to think that we're all pretty tech savy, security conscious and not easily led. That being said, I know how easy it can be to agree to something that makes you feel a little uneasy, just to avoid the hassle of kicking up a fuss.

On Sunday April 13th the Gaba branch had its fifth social event in the last 18 months. We held our first Christmas party at The Pink Cow in Roppongi in December 2012, then Hanami in Yoyogi Park in April 2013. We then relocated to What The Dickens in Ebisu, a great British pub and live space only a few minutes from Ebisu station.

A large number of university and high school teachers are part-time workers. And as you know, the annual ritual of waiting around to hear about new schedules can be a nerve racking time. Will you receive the same number of classes? Will the school try to change your working days? What will you be teaching? Will the schedule from School A be available in time to arrange your schedule at School B?

Many instructors are not aware that clients can be blocked, and think that they simply have to put up with bad treatment. This impression leads to problems, particularly in regards to sexual harassment from clients.

It is now well established that the quality of support that instructors receive when reporting incidents of sexual harassment is patchy at best. As such, the union brought it up as an issue in 2013 negotiations and has been pursuing the issue ever since.